Space probe transmits stunning new views of Pluto
Fists hit the air and tiny American flags fluttered overhead July 14 as a huge crowd in a Laurel, Md., conference room cheered. It was all for the New Horizons spacecraft's closest approach to Pluto. At 7:50 a.m. ET, the spacecraft swept past Pluto's surface at a distance of about ...
- Posted on July 31, 2015

Film appears from before Amelia Earhart disappeared
It was a clear spring day in 1937 when Amelia Earhart was ready to make history by flying around the world. She brought her personal photographer to a small Southern California airport to document the journey's beginning.
Al Bresnik took dozens of still photos. They included...
- Posted on June 12, 2015

Messages in meteorites bring news from outer space
Meteorites may conjure images of giant rocks smashing into towns. In fact, meteorites rarely hit people. They regularly bring valuable materials to Earth from outer space.
All of the iron we use on Earth today was delivered by meteorites. Gold and platinum even have meteorit...
- Posted on June 12, 2015

Woman sets out to row across Pacific Ocean
The best part of being on the ocean for weeks at a time, says Sonya Baumstein, is the stars. The worst? Being wet, all the time.
Baumstein is an athlete from Orlando, Florida. She waited for weeks to set out in her custom-designed rowboat from Choshi. It is a Japanese port e...
- Posted on June 11, 2015

Wanna buy “The Flintstones” home?
"Flintstones" fans with a few million dollars now have a chance to rule over the town of Bedrock and own a page right out of history.
The owner of Flintstones Bedrock City, a northern Arizona theme park designed around the Hanna-Barbera cartoon, is selling the property. The ...
- Posted on June 11, 2015

Fake orca flops as sea lion scarecrow
An effort to use a fake, life-sized orca to scare off hundreds of sea lions crowding docks off the Oregon coast ended, at least temporarily, with the fiberglass creature belly-up after it was swamped by a passing ship.
Still, Port of Astoria Executive Director Jim Knight sai...
- Posted on June 10, 2015

When will the leaning tower of Pisa fall over?
You asked us, “When will the leaning tower of Pisa fall over?”
Pretty much since the first stone was laid, the tower of Pisa in Italy has been a Keystone Kops version of architecture.
Not long after construction began in 1173, when builders reached the third story...
- Posted on June 10, 2015

Moons “dance” around Pluto
There's a chaotic dance going on at the far end of our solar system. It involves Pluto and five of its closest friends, a study finds.
Hubble Space Telescope images of Pluto, its largest moon Charon and tinier moons Styx, Nix, Hydra and Kerberos show the odd rhythmic gyratio...
- Posted on June 9, 2015

They’re called “wild animals” for a reason
A pamphlet drawing of a man being gored and flung into the air warns tourists in Yellowstone National Park not to get too close to bison. They're wild animals and can be dangerous.
Rangers distribute the flyer to people as they enter the park. But some visitors still aren't ...
- Posted on June 9, 2015

Tanzania is losing its elephants
The sharp decline of the elephant population in Tanzania, most likely due to poaching, is catastrophic. That's according to a wildlife conservation group. Tanzania is in Africa.
The country's government has just estimated that 65,721 elephants died there in the last five yea...
- Posted on June 8, 2015

Baseball star snaps selfie with fan’s phone
Bryce Harper called this shot.
The Washington Nationals slugger known for launching long home runs thrilled a fan at a recent game. He gestured for her cellphone, snapped a playful selfie and then tossed it back into the stands.
Harper took the picture in right field ...
- Posted on June 8, 2015

Free SAT test prep available
The nonprofit organization behind the SAT college entrance exam has teamed up with a California pioneer in online education. It wants to make test preparation materials available for free.
The move is aimed at making the college admissions race less stressful. It should also...
- Posted on June 5, 2015

Virtual reality becoming a greater part of reality
Virtual reality is creeping into our world.
Once seen mostly as a tool for alien-blasting gamers, now movie studios, television producers and artists are adopting the technology. It immerses people in faraway realms. It uses bulky goggles, house-sized domes and smartphones....
- Posted on June 5, 2015

Animal control officer ready for toy tiger teasing
An animal control worker in Michigan was convinced he was looking at a young tiger lying in a driveway, so he approached with care. He grabbed a pole and a shield and called police.
Turns out, it was a stuffed animal.
The Grand Rapids Press reports that Kent County An...
- Posted on June 4, 2015

Celebrities raise awareness of California drought
Willing or not, celebrities are playing a role in raising awareness about California's debilitating drought.
Stars whose homes boast lush, green lawns at a time when residents have been asked to cut back on water may be drought-shamed on social media. Meanwhile, entertainers...
- Posted on June 4, 2015

Man controls robotic arm with his mind
A man paralyzed by a gunshot more than a decade ago can shake hands, drink and play "rock, paper, scissors" by controlling a robotic arm with his thoughts, researchers have reported.
Two years ago, doctors in California implanted a pair of tiny chips into the brain of Erik S...
- Posted on June 3, 2015

Is it true we have taste buds in our stomachs?
You asked us, is it true that we have taste buds in our stomachs?
Not only do we have taste receptors on our tongues and in our tummies, they're showing up in our intestines and lungs.
But let's go back a few steps. There are thousands of taste buds in our mouths. Eac...
- Posted on June 3, 2015

#AskPOTUS is a hotdog a sandwich?
Give people a chance to pop a question to POTUS and they'll take the invitation and run with it.
President Barack Obama has taken to Twitter for his first Q-and-A since setting up his @POTUS handle. The suggested subject from POTUS (short for President of the United States) ...
- Posted on June 2, 2015

Spelling bee ends in tie, second year in a row
For the second straight year, the Scripps National Spelling Bee ended with co-champions. Each held onto one side of the golden trophy while they were showered with confetti.
Vanya Shivashankar and Gokul Venkatachalam were the last two standing, having exhausted the 25 words ...
- Posted on June 2, 2015

Walrus cam an Internet hit
A popular webcam is once again streaming to the Internet. It is showing large male Pacific walruses lying on the beach while a number of seabirds fly overhead.
The high-definition stream from Alaska's remote Round Island had been dormant for nearly a decade. Its private fund...
- Posted on June 1, 2015